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Chapter 8. Towards a relevance-theoretic account of hate speech

  • Jadwiga Linde-Usiekniewicz
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Relevance Theory, Figuration, and Continuity in Pragmatics
This chapter is in the book Relevance Theory, Figuration, and Continuity in Pragmatics

Abstract

Hate speech has been studied as a social, psychological and legal phenomenon in various frameworks offered by relevant disciplines, with most famous account being Judith Butler’s analysis of hate speech in terms of Austinian speech act theory. This chapter explores the possibility of applying relevance-theoretic analysis to hate speech. It argues that all kinds of hate speech, ranging from most direct to most covert, are instances of ostensive behavior that requires being processed together with some mental representations, corresponding to either intuitive or reflected beliefs about generalized inferiority of a group of people by virtue of their race, ethnicity, faith/atheism, gender, sexual orientation, sexual identity, or etc. or, their corresponding meta-representations, for greatest (tentatively optimal) relevance.

Abstract

Hate speech has been studied as a social, psychological and legal phenomenon in various frameworks offered by relevant disciplines, with most famous account being Judith Butler’s analysis of hate speech in terms of Austinian speech act theory. This chapter explores the possibility of applying relevance-theoretic analysis to hate speech. It argues that all kinds of hate speech, ranging from most direct to most covert, are instances of ostensive behavior that requires being processed together with some mental representations, corresponding to either intuitive or reflected beliefs about generalized inferiority of a group of people by virtue of their race, ethnicity, faith/atheism, gender, sexual orientation, sexual identity, or etc. or, their corresponding meta-representations, for greatest (tentatively optimal) relevance.

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Acknowledgements vii
  4. Introduction 1
  5. Part 1. Continua in non-literalness
  6. Chapter 1. Category extension as a variety of loose use 25
  7. Chapter 2. Metonymic relations – from determinacy to indeterminacy 45
  8. Part 2. Concepts, procedures and discourse effects
  9. Chapter 3. Evidential participles and epistemic vigilance 69
  10. Chapter 4. The Greek connective gar 95
  11. Chapter 5. Metarepresentation markers in Indus Kohistani 121
  12. Part 3. Multimodality and style
  13. Chapter 6. When EVERYTHING STANDS OUT, Nothing Does 167
  14. Chapter 7. Relevance, style and multimodality 193
  15. Part 4. Pragmatic effects and emotions
  16. Chapter 8. Towards a relevance-theoretic account of hate speech 229
  17. Chapter 9. Tropes of ill repute 259
  18. Part 5. Stylistic effects in literary works
  19. Chapter 10. Another look at “Cat in the rain” 291
  20. Chapter 11. Echoic irony in Philip Larkin’s poetry and its preservation in Polish translations 309
  21. Chapter 12. Humour and irony in George Mikes’ How to be a Brit 327
  22. Name index 351
  23. Subject index 355
https://doi.org/10.1075/ftl.8.08lin

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. Acknowledgements vii
  4. Introduction 1
  5. Part 1. Continua in non-literalness
  6. Chapter 1. Category extension as a variety of loose use 25
  7. Chapter 2. Metonymic relations – from determinacy to indeterminacy 45
  8. Part 2. Concepts, procedures and discourse effects
  9. Chapter 3. Evidential participles and epistemic vigilance 69
  10. Chapter 4. The Greek connective gar 95
  11. Chapter 5. Metarepresentation markers in Indus Kohistani 121
  12. Part 3. Multimodality and style
  13. Chapter 6. When EVERYTHING STANDS OUT, Nothing Does 167
  14. Chapter 7. Relevance, style and multimodality 193
  15. Part 4. Pragmatic effects and emotions
  16. Chapter 8. Towards a relevance-theoretic account of hate speech 229
  17. Chapter 9. Tropes of ill repute 259
  18. Part 5. Stylistic effects in literary works
  19. Chapter 10. Another look at “Cat in the rain” 291
  20. Chapter 11. Echoic irony in Philip Larkin’s poetry and its preservation in Polish translations 309
  21. Chapter 12. Humour and irony in George Mikes’ How to be a Brit 327
  22. Name index 351
  23. Subject index 355
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